Ex-Illinois governor gets 78-month prison sentence

CHICAGO, Sep 7 (Reuters) Former Illinois Gov. George Ryan, promoted as a Nobel Peace Prize candidate for his vigorous opposition to capital punishment, was sentenced to 6 1/2 years in prison for corrupt dealings while in office.

The 72-year-old Ryan, his voice cracking, told the court before sentencing: ''I realise ... the people of Illinois have lost faith in their government. And for that I am very sorry. I let them down.'' But he did not admit guilt beyond saying, ''there are failures I regret. I should have been more vigilant, should have been more watchful,'' calling his sentencing ''the saddest day of my life.'' On April 18, after a nearly six-month trial, a jury convicted Ryan and friend and lobbyist Larry Warner of 18 counts of racketeering, conspiracy, fraud and other offenses involving favoritism and kickbacks for state contracts and property leases that enriched Ryan and his friends.

The veteran Republican politician who spent 36 years in state government maintained his innocence throughout the trial.

US District Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer ordered Ryan to report to prison on January. 4. She will rule later on whether he can remain free on bond while his lawyers pursue an appeal.

Pallmeyer told Ryan she had received letters saying he had been betrayed by his friends, but, she said, ''the wrongdoing is not by his friends. It is his.'' The 78-month sentence Ryan got was the lowest possible under federal guidelines. Ryan, when he spoke to the court, said a long prison term would be a ''death sentence'' given his age and ailments that include diabetes and Crohn's Disease.

WARNER SENTENCED TO 41 MONTHS IN PRISON His co-defendant Warner, 67, was sentenced to 41 months in prison. He apologised to the court and accepted responsibility for his crimes.

In 2000, Ryan ordered a moratorium on executions in Illinois after 13 death row inmates were found to have been wrongly convicted, and he declared the system that convicted them ''broken.'' He spoke widely on his transformation into an ardent opponent of the death penalty, and just before leaving office in 2003 he emptied the state's death row, commuting the sentences of 167 inmates to life in prison.

He became a hero to those opposed to capital punishment and his name was submitted at least twice for consideration for the Nobel Peace Prize, though it is not known if he was ever given serious consideration.

Most of the charges against Ryan related to his eight years as Illinois Secretary of State in the 1990s, where he oversaw licensing in a department that was rife with bribery. Dozens of former employees have been convicted for exchanging licenses for bribes, with the proceeds frequently spent on tickets to Ryan campaign events.

Investigators began the probe following a 1994 highway accident that killed six children that was blamed on a driver who paid a bribe to get his license.

Pallmeyer said Ryan was wrong not to reach out to the victims of accidents caused by drivers who obtained their licenses illegally under his watch.

Ryan was accused of accepting free vacations, tickets to events and gifts to his family from friends who brokered deals with the state with his backing.

Ryan won a single four-year term as Illinois governor in 1998 before retiring under a cloud of suspicion.

REUTERS DH PM0436